The two first albums from Norwegian sextet Bogus Blimp
were strange collages of genres, ranging from tidy electro
to heavy metal and noir orchestral to oblique pop. Marrying
the weird and the wonderful, the hideous and the sublime,
the ridiculous and the clever, Bogus Blimp shamelessly
experimented with everything within their range. Both
Men-mic (1998) and Cords.Wires (2000)
vowed to respect nothing and try everything, and with
a sound resembling nothing else, Bogus Blimp set out
to push the boundaries of experimental rock to the limit.
Formed in 1996 in the small Norwegian town of Sandefjord,
situated near Oslo, Bogus Blimp comprises vocalist Christian
Mona, keyboardist Aslak Larsen, guitarist Hilmar Larsen,
bassist Kyrre Bjørkås, sampling keyboardist
Bjørn Larsen, and drummer Ragnar Berg. One of
the first bands to be signed to Oslo-based Jester Records,
Bogus Blimp released their first mini album, Men-mic,
in 1998, and established the sound that would fuel its
follow-up, Cords.Wires published two years
later. Darker and rawer than its predecessor, this album
expanded on the cinematic aspect of Men-mic
as the production became fuller and more sophisticated.
Four years on, Rdtr shows a slightly more subdued
Bogus Blimp returning to the grind. If there aren’t
any heavy metal stabs to be found here, the atmosphere
is as dark and unsettling as ever. Claustrophobic poetry
is scattered all over this album and underpins the oppressive
nature of these sonic constructions, especially on Automated
Bathroom, and ever more so on Going Commercial,
where Mona’s voice crawls under the skin and infects
the mind by telling a banal story through relentless
questioning. Yet, Rdtr introduces a slightly
more playful approach to the general sonic structure
within which the band evolves. Although this remains
very discreet, hints can be perceived through lighter
and more accessible melodies and arrangements, giving
this album a more respectable face. But this is only
for show as behind the scene, the band is busy twisting
it all and playing games with the listener’s mind.
Bogus Blimp is by nature a rather difficult act to nail
down, and this album ultimately raises more questions
than answers. The cinematic aspect of the band’s
music still shapes this record, yet, the lack of clear
evolution from their previous effort is likely to leave
some listeners disappointed. Rdtr remains however
an interesting record, and is perhaps an ideal point
of entry for the band’s body of work.
4.2 |
